Detroit auto show organizers are preparing for the announcement of a highly anticipated trans-Atlantic partnership between Ford Motor Co. and Volkswagen — with CEOs Jim Hackett and Herbert Diess both expected to be in town for a public announcement as soon as Tuesday morning.

While the two carmakers continue their talks, which began last summer and are covered by confidentiality agreements, sources following the negotiations say the companies appear to have “reached agreements.”

It looks like the German and American companies will, in fact, announce a collaboration on commercial vans and midsize pickups initially, and then continue reviewing opportunities to cooperate on electrification and driverless technology. Ford Transit Vans are the best-selling commercial vans in the world. The Ford Ranger, the world's second-best-selling pickup of that size, also is a global product used by consumers and small business owners worldwide.

The deal is expected to be announced in pieces, a “formal launch of alliance,” sources said. Things not yet confirmed next week will still be considered possible as discussions move ahead, the Free Press learned.

What is significant is that the companies have an “alliance,” sources said.

Volkswagen's governing supervisory board did take action in a board meeting in Germany on Friday, establishing a "fundamental agreement on the planned cooperation," according to Deutsche Presse-Agentur, a news agency based in Hamburg.

Both Volkswagen and Ford declined to comment to the Free Press.

Potential U.S. manufacturing?

Diess, who last month said VW might make cars in U.S. Ford plants, sees unity as a path to more efficient manufacturing, research and development, Deutsche Presse-Agentur reported. No details are available on that idea, and the situation remains fluid, sources said.

The companies have said consistently that they will not take equity stakes in each other.

People familiar with discussions say it is most likely that Diess will the first to reveal details, since official comment has come from him already. In addition, Bill Ford, executive chairman of the board of directors, is planning to be in Detroit for the public discussions as they unfold.

Early Monday morning, Ford is scheduled to do media interviews and unveil the 2020 Ford Explorer and the Mustang Shelby GT500.

Volkswagen has confirmed a series of events starting at midmorning with a media briefing, likely to unveil its new Passat. Later in the day, Scott Keogh, president and CEO of Volkswagen Group of America, delivers a business update. Other VW executives also are scheduled for discussions.

Just because Ford and VW haven’t scheduled formal remarks about the alliance doesn’t mean they won’t discuss developments. The auto show media schedule includes a "pending industry announcement" on Tuesday morning.

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Left: The 2018 Ford F-150 is revealed during the 2017 North American International Auto Show in Detroit in January 2017. Right: Volkswagen Chairman Martin Winterkorn speaking to the media on the eve of the NAIAS in 2017.(Photo: Ryan Garza,Geoff Robins, Detroit Free Press, Getty Images)

Ford and its F-Series franchise, which alone is comparable to Nike or Facebook in terms of revenue generation, has led U.S. pickup sales for generations. While Ford is weak internationally, VW was No. 1 in worldwide sales in 2018.

Volkswagen employs 8,500 people in the U.S., while Ford, the largest car manufacturing employer in America, has more than 85,000 U.S. employees.

'Everybody is curious'

While driverless vehicle projects are under consideration for joint partnership, progress in that area is slower, sources said.

"Everybody is curious to see how it shakes out," said Stephanie Brinley, principal analyst at IHS Markit. "It's two big companies with opportunity. Executives from both companies have been pretty public about the fact that they're talking."

Ford Europe officials this week called a news conference to announce job cuts, plant closure and overall trims while at the same time mentioning Volkswagen as a potential bright spot in its plans. Steven Armstrong, president of Ford Europe, said he was not authorized to offer specifics.

Since June, Ford and VW have discussed partnering on commercial vehicles, pickups, electric vehicles and driverless vehicles. After a White House meeting in December, Diess shocked reporters by speaking extemporaneously about the deal.

Ford executives have said consistently that talks are proceeding as hoped.